The Carolina Panthers have played six games in the 2023 NFL season and are still searching for their first win. We knew it was going to be a developmental year with a new coaching staff and a rookie quarterback, but few were expecting the team to struggle so much to even to find the win column. After dropping six straight to begin the year, will the Panthers have the infamous accomplishment of being the first 0-17 team in NFL history?
Who has gone winless in a season?
Only five teams have gone winless in NFL history. The 1960 Dallas Cowboys finished 0-11-1, and the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers ended their season 0-14. The 1982 Baltimore Colts finished 0-8-1, marking the fewest games played for a winless team. More recently, the Detroit Lions went 0-16 in 2008 and the Cleveland Browns finished 0-16 in 2017. With the NFL expanding its regular season to 17 games in 2020, Carolina has a chance to make history.
Panthers transition from 2022 to 2023
The fact that the Panthers are this bad is plain baffling. They finished 7-10 last season in a year that they fired head coach Matt Rhule and traded away running back Christian McCaffrey. Carolina brought in Frank Reich to be its new head coach and paired him with Thomas Brown and Ejiro Evero as his offensive and defensive coordinators, respectively.
The offense got completely overhauled as they traded away wide receiver D.J. Moore in a trade package for the #1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, which they then used on new franchise quarterback Bryce Young. Miles Sanders, Adam Thielen, DJ Chark and Hayden Hurst were all added as free agents to bring almost an entirely new starting offensive skill position group to the Panthers.
Rest of Season Schedule
Week 7: Bye
Week 8: vs. Houston Texans
Week 9: vs. Indianapolis Colts
Week 10: @ Chicago Bears
Week 11: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Week 12: @ Tennessee Titans
Week 13: @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 14: @ New Orleans Saints
Week 15: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Week 16: vs. Green Bay Packers
Week 17: @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 18: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The good news about being on a losing streak is that the team is heading into its bye week. The Texans matchup could be a tough one as Carolina will get a front-and-center look at a quarterback that they could’ve drafted and a head coach they could’ve hired in CJ Stroud and DeMeco Ryans.
The Colts will still be without rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson in Week 9 as he will be missing his fourth game from being on injured reserve. The Panthers struggle to stop the run, and just because they are facing a backup quarterback doesn’t mean they will be able to handle Jonathan Taylor and Zack Moss.
Week 10 may end up being their best chance to catch a win if the defense can overwhelm quarterback Justin Fields and stop Moore from having a revenge game. The Titans could be another game they could sneak a win, but they will be on the road and dealing with Derrick Henry.
Carolina played New Orleans close in Week 2, but benefitted from being at home. The Panthers could draw the Falcons at home at the right time to pick up a win. The final score makes their first divisional matchup of the season look more lopsided than it actually was.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have looked like the better team during the early part of the season, but with a very early bye week and a potential playoff berth on the road, the Panthers may be saved if Tampa Bay rests important players in Week 18.
The Verdict
It feels like the Panthers are going to have to steal a game. The offense can’t sustain drives to give the defense a break. The defense is starting to rack up injuries and could be hindered further if the front office trades away Brian Burns and/or Jeremy Chinn to gain draft assets in the rebuild. The Panthers already traded away their first-round pick this year in the Moore deal to move up to No. 1 in the last draft.
At the very least, there isn’t a single game remaining on the schedule that you can say, “oh, Carolina will win that.” The Panthers will be underdogs the rest of the way, barring some team-altering injuries for their opponents. From what we have seen through the first month and a half of the 2023 NFL season, it isn’t outlandish to think they could end up going winless.